Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today applauded the Senate’s passage of three pieces of legislation, the Abolish Human Trafficking Act of 2017, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017, and the U.S. Territories Investor Protection Act. Cortez Masto co-sponsored these bills, which were designed to protect victims of human trafficking and strengthen safeguards for investors.
“Combating human trafficking and protecting consumers were two of my top priorities as Attorney General of Nevada, and they remain my top priorities in the United States Senate,” said Cortez Masto. “I’m proud to co-sponsor these bills because they represent a bipartisan effort to address some of the most pressing issues we face as Americans. If signed into law, these bills will strengthen federal resources that combat modern day slavery and protect retirees and investors in U.S. territories against conflicts of interest by ensuring the same company transparency that mainland investors already receive. Senate passage of these bills is an important step in enhancing public safety and strengthening investor security in the United States.”
More information about these bills is available below:
- The Abolish Human Trafficking Act of 2017 reauthorizes domestic anti-human trafficking programs from the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) and strengthens the U.S. government’s approach to combating trafficking. The bill extends the life of the DOJ’s Domestic Trafficking Victims’ Fund and gives law enforcement additional tools and resources to target organized human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
- The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017 is aimed at combating human trafficking in the United States and reauthorizes the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). The bill promotes the availability of training for school resource officers to better identify and respond to human trafficking victims and extends a grant program for training school personnel on how to recognize and respond to human trafficking. Additionally, the bill expands services authorized under the TVPA to include improved education on best practices for screening and identifying trafficking victims.
- The U.S. Territories Investor Protection Act would extend investor protections to retirees and other savers across Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands or other U.S. possessions. Because of a historical oversight, the Investment Company Act did not apply these safeguards to residents of these islands.